10/12/2009 @ 4:00PM

Best Things To Buy In The Fall

In most parts of the country, outdoor pools have been closed for the season. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t buy a bathing suit.

That’s because swimwear is one of the many goods retailers discount this time of year. Other items include charcoal grills and lawn mowers. Store managers don’t want to store these things, send them back to a warehouse or sell them for pennies on the dollar to wholesalers. They’d rather sell them to you for 40% off or more.

Shop when money is tight? The Conference Board’s Consumer Confidence Index fell to 53.1 in September from 54.5 in August. That news, coupled with a 9.8% unemployment rate and the Labor Department’s announcement that job openings in the U.S. fell in August to the lowest level in at least nine years likely has Americans searching for ways to save money as they struggle to pay their rent and mortgages, tuitions, car payments and groceries.

Knowing precisely when to buy things is a good place to start. In addition to swimwear and grills, fall also is the best time of the year to buy a new car. New-model cars have been parked in dealership lots since September, and salespeople are eager to get rid of the others in October and November. Expect to save at least 10%–and probably more–on the previous year’s model. And if you’re not particular about the color, the longer you wait, the better deal you’ll get. Orange and purple vehicles typically sell well below sticker price in November and December, when dealers become more desperate to sell. Same goes for new recreational vehicles. RV dealers don’t want older models cluttering their lots.

The best time to buy fruits and vegetables is when they’re in season. This month and through November, apples, cranberries, oranges, tangerines, honeydew melons, Bartlett pears, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, mushrooms and spinach will be in season and less pricey than exotic fruits and vegetables stores have to import to keep on shelves.

Good wine can be had for a good price any time of the year, but fall is a great time to stock up on wine. The fall harvest season, when most vineyards release their latest vintages, offers the best selection.

Toys and Housewares

It used to be that the best time of the year to buy toys was the day after Thanksgiving, when the Christmas shopping season officially began. Those days are gone. Stores put popular toys on sale in early November and sometimes before Halloween to lure shoppers with the hope that they’ll return in December to do more of their Christmas shopping.

Fall is one of two great times of the year to buy cookware. Pots, pans and cutlery go on sale toward the end of the year for much the same reason “white sales” occur in January. Part of the reason has to do with tradition, and part of the reason has to do with stores wanting to take advantage of the fact that large numbers of consumers shop in November and December to buy holiday gifts.

Read on for fun facts on what your car says about you and 10 symptoms too dangerous to ignore.

In 2007, many stores began putting electronics on sale in early November to lengthen the Christmas shopping season, but the day after Thanksgiving is still the best day of the year to buy electronics. Expect the deepest discounts of the year on Black Friday, so named because some retailers drop prices so low in order to lure shoppers that they take a loss on certain items. Keep in mind that these items often sell out fast. Ranges and stoves typically go on sale during the summer holidays, but ranges–and sometimes dishwashers–also get discounted in early fall, when new models arrive.

Clothes

In addition to jeans, which are more likely to go on sale in the fall during years when denim is not expected to be a major trend, the end of fall, between Thanksgiving and Christmas, is the best time of the year to buy a wedding dress. Many bridal shops start receiving large shipments of dresses in November because so many couples get engaged around Christmas and on New Year’s Eve, then begin shopping for dresses in the winter. If you shop in December, when stores are less crowded and are trying to boost their end-of-the-year sales, you’ll be in a better position to negotiate.